Remote control means for water-heaters.



E. S. STACK.

REMOTE CONTROL MEANS FOR WATER HEATERS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4. 1913.

Patented July 31, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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E. S. STACK.

REMOTE CONTROL MEANS FOR WATER HEATERS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4. 1913.

1,234,949. 'Patented my 31, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

E. S. STACK.

REMOTE CONTROL MEANS FOR WATER HEATERS.

' APPLICATON FILED JUNE 4.1913- Patented July 31, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 man. s. STACK, orwnsT sorEnvILLn, MASSACHUSETTS.

REMOTE coNTnoLlnEANs For. WATER-HEATER.

To' all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Emana S. STACK, a citizen 'of the United States, and resident of West Somerville, in the courfty of Middlesex and State of 'Massachusetta have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Remote Control Means for Water-Heaters, of which the following is a specicatlon.

The present invention relates to water heating systems particularly adapted to domestic use, and to that type of heating systems in which the heat is furnished by a. gas iame. The object of the in vention, brieiy stated, is to provide an etcient and at the same time simple means by which the gasY supply for the heater may befopened and closed by manipulation of a controller at the point where hot water is desired. 'I n other words, the object of the invention 1s to enable one who desires to obtain hot water v in a bath room, laundry or elsewhere, remote the distant controller is accomplished by a column of water, and this is the mode of. transmission which I have illustrated in the present application. Various forms of controlling device may be used for making the transmission means active and inactive, and in this speciication I describe and illustrate two such devices.

In the drawings forming a part ofv this application, Figure 1 is a view partly in elevation. and partly diagrammatic of a hot water system, a gas heater and a means pr'ovided with a distant controller for regulating the lame of the heater.

Fig. 2 is a detailed sectional view of a controller alternative to that shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to ay portlon of Fig. 2, showing the mode of applying the controller which is illustrated in detail in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic elevation and partial section similar to Fig. 1, illustrating a modification of the invention by whic Specification of Letterslratent.

Patented' Jl'y 31, 1917.

Application lrell June 14, 1913. Serial No. 771.665. l

vtwo or more distant controllers are each able to regulate the heater.

Fig; 5 is a similar. view showing a simpllied means for obtaining the same'eiect.

Flg. 6 1s a sectional-view similar to Fig. 2

showlng a modification of the controllerv la'nd nearly to the bottomv of the tank,` as

shown in dotted lines. c is a heater to which Water flows from the Abottom of tank a through a pipe .1 The cold water enters thel bottom of the heater and the hot Water passes from the top through a pipe f which is connected by a coupling g with the llot water uptake pipe L from the tank, by which the hot water taps of the water system are supplied. A tap z' represents one of the hot water taps and may be considered as typical of any number, whether for wash bowls, bath tubs, laundries or sinks, or for other fixtures is immaterial..

The heating flame for the heater c is supplied by a burner, which is fed by a gas pipe y' leading from a valve casing la, which is fed by a supply pipe Z and in which there is a valve. Such valve has a stem m projecting from one end of the casing k and adapted to be movedl endwise. When moved in the-direction of the arrow in Fig. 1,the stemA m opens the valve.y Any sort of auto-n matic'means, such as a spring or anything else, may be provided for closing the valve and normally holding it closed.

An ac'tuator for opening the valve is indicated in Fig. l as a diaphragm o contained in a diaphragm chamber p and arranged to act on a head g, which is connected with a u, which, in the embodiment shown in Fig.l

1, is a three-way cock adapted to admit water to 'the tube t and to permit discharge of the water therefrom when required. When the three-Way cock is in the position shown in Fig. l, it admits water under pressure from the pipe v, which may receive its supply from any convenient source, for instance, the pipe which. supplies the cold water tap, which is ordinarily provided beside the hot Water tap in any of the ordinary plumbing systems. When the three-way cock is turned a quarter turn in the direction of the arrow shown beside the dotted valve handle in Fig. l, the valve is placed so that it uncov- Vers an exhaust opening fw and permits tion with the tube t and is supported in a guide The manually operated part of the controller is a cam lever y pivoted at y1 to the guide w, and having a cam nger y2 adapted to bear on the collapsible container,

either directly, as shown in Fig. 2, or

through the medium of a stiff spring ya, as particularly shown in Fig. 6, Vand indicated in Fig. 5, which is'so arranged and constructed that it may yield throughout the full range of movement given by the cam finger y2 without harming the collapsible container in case the latter should be inca able of being compressed for any reason en the controller u2 is used in place of the controller u, there is no need for connecting the tube t with a supply of water under-pressure, because the system is then closed and the force supplied by the cam lever y to the collapsible tank gives all the pressure necessary.

t will be understood that both the threeway cock u and the collapsible container u2,

be caused to act through the tube t upon thev diaphragm o. The tube t is a pressure transmitting means, which is capable of being run from any part of a building to any other part, up and down from one level to another and around corners and bends. As thev pressures transmitted are practically static, the actual body of water moving in the tube and the extent of movement being very slight, the transmitting means or medium is practically rictionless and is able to transmit pressures perfectly and without loss of power from any point in the building to any other point, no matter how wide apart these points may be or how many bends and ,i Laagste stem 'i' to abut against the gas valve stem m and opening the gas valve. Thereby one desiring hot water may turn on the gas at the heater by simply manipulating the threeway cock or the compression lever y Without lea-ving the place Where the water is desired, and particularly without being obliged to go to the kitchen, laundry, cellar or other more or less distant point Where the heater may be located. When 'the three-way cock is turned to the normal position, the supply from the pipe o is cut o and enough water in the transmission pipe is permitted to escape through the exhaust w to allow the 'diaphragm and gas -valve 'to return to their normal positions in which the gas supply to the heater is shut down or shut o. The same result is secured by returning the cam lever y of Fig. 2 to the normal position, whereupon the pressure of spring s causes the water in the diaphragm chamber to be forced into the tube and an equal amount to be -displaced from the tube into the colnot necessary to wait until the entire body of water in the tank becomes heated, because there is a direct flow ltrom the heater to the pipe it and thence to the tap assoon as the tap is opened.v While the tap remains closed there is a circulation between the heater and tank by which the water in the tank is gradually heated. As many remote controlling devices may be used with one heater as desired. Thus, in a dwelling there may be one in each bath room and one in the laundry. For a multiplication of the controlling devices, it is merely necessary either to provide a number of valves 7c with their diaphragms o, all connected in parallel between the pipe Z and the burner as shown in Fig. 4:, where the same reference characters, modified by the exponent 1, are employed to show duplications of the parts represented in Fig. l; or where the alternative controller shown in Fig. 2 is used, only one valve and one diaphragm need be used, and all the controllers may communicate with the same diaphragm chamber, as shown in Fig. 5. The remote control device may be used in connection with a direct control near the heater by providing a direct control valve a1 in a by-pass pipe b1 which runs from that part of the valve chamber ic into which the pipe Z opens, to

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theliurner. The valve a* may be regulated according to the ordinary needs, and then if more water is called for than can be suficiently heated b the flame under this relation, ahotter ame may be produced y opening the diaphragm controlled valve for as long av time as necessary, aftery which, when this valve is again closed, the burner is again brought under the control of the valve a1. v

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters 'Patent is 1. In a water heating system the combination with a waterheater, delivery pipes in connection with said heater-'and having outlets at separated points, manually operable pressure applying control means adjacent to each of said points, a gas burner for furnishing heat at the heater, Huid contain-l ing pressure transmitting means leading from each of said control means to the gas.

burner, and means adjacent to'the burner operable by pressure delivered through said transmitting means for admitting gas to the burner in response to pressure originating at either of said control means.

2. In a water heating system the combination with delivery pipes having discharge outlets at separated points and al heater for supplying hot water to said delivery pipes, a controller adjacent to each of said discharge points, means adjacent to the heater for governing the amount of heat furnished thereby to the water, and fluid conducting means leading from each of said controllers' to said governing means containing fluid which is adapted to be put under pressure by operation of said controllers, and said governing means being constructed to incre'ase'the amount of .heat developed at the heater, whereby said heater may be operated 1iy manipulation of either ofsaid controlers.

rality of discharge taps located at diierent points and in connection with said heater, oi heat regulating means adjacent to the heater for governing the amount of heat furnished to the water therein, conducting means containing uid in communication with` said regulating means and leading thence into proximity to each of said taps,

a controller adjacent to each trap constructed and arranged to produce and intermit pressure upon the fluid in the latter, whereby either of said controllers is adapted to put 3. In a hot water supplying system, the)l combination with a water vheater and a plu.

taining pressure transmitting iluid leading from said actuator and having terminals at separated points, and a manually operated controller in connection with each of said yterminals adapted to apply and intermit pressure to the transmission uid, wherebyv either of said controllers is adapted to operate the said valve, each of said controllers having a yielding pressure applying medium suiiiciently powerful to apply the pressure needed to operate the valve but adapted to yield vto prevent application of excessive pressure to the uid. l

6. A valve controlling apparatus comprising in combination with a valve, apressure actuated member associated with said valve so as to control the position of the same, a conduit leading from said member and containing a pressure transmitting fluid, said conduit having a plurality of distinct terminals, and a fiuid vcontainer 95 connected with each terminal andfequipped' with means for applying pressure to the iiuid therein, whereby either container may be caused toY actuate thevalve. v

7. A valve controlling apparatus com-y prising in combination a valve, a chamber adapted to contain pressure transmitting fluid and having a movable wall, means for transmitting movements of said wall to? the valve, elongated conducting means con- 105 taining pressure transmitting` fluid extending from said chamber and having separate terminals, a collapsible iiuid container connected to each terminal, and' pressure applying means connected with each container for collapsing the same, whereby to produce and transmit pressure in the iiuid to the chamber, said pressure transmitting means including a yielding element having suicient stiffness to apply the required pressure, but being suiiciently yielding to avoid injury to the apparatusin case pressure should be applied to more than one container at the same time. j

8. A -controller for a valve operating apparatus consisting of a collapsible container in which is confined a quantity of relatively incompressible iiuid, va pipe leading from said container, a pressure applying member and a s ring interposed between said member andp' said container, arranged to transmit pressure from the member to the container and being suciently powerful to cause collapsing of the container.

`9. A controller for a valve operating apparatus consisting of a container having a ortion thereof. so movable as to vary the internal volume of the containers a pressure applying member for so moving said movable portion, and a yielding device interposed between said pressure applying member and said movable portion for transmitting tbe force applied by said member and for limiting suoli force by its capability of yielding.;- to a `predetermined amount.

' 10. The combination with a Water heater,

and means for governing the amount of heat furnished thereby, of a plurality of remote controllers for said governing; means., each of said controllers comprising a vessel containing' pressure transmitting fluid and annabee l i therefrom to said v,eroverning means and lled Withwliuid, either of said controllers being operable to transmit operating pressure to said governor and means for absorbing the ecess Lpressure caused by the operation of two of said controllers at the same time.

ln testimony whereof l have axed my signature, in presence of two Witnesses.,

ELMER S. STACK.

`having a movable Wall, conducting means in i communication with said chambers leading' 

